May 18, 2020

Dear SPUSD Parents and Guardians,

The District has begun discussions and is developing instructional plans for the 2020-2021 school year. This week, you will receive a second survey as a follow-up to the previous ISDLP survey. The new survey specifically asks about your thoughts for your child next year. The survey data will assist us in evaluating the feasibility of different models.

We are considering a variety of instructional models based on ever-changing health guidelines from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health and the Los Angeles County Office of Education. We recognize that although the ISDLP is currently meeting the needs of the majority of our students -- as reflected in the recent survey results -- it was designed as a short term solution in response to the pandemic emergency. You may recall, schools originally were scheduled to be physically closed for a few weeks. If the next school year begins with a distance learning model in place, the school day will have an increased focus on synchronous (instruction occurring in real time but not in person) and asynchronous (pre-recorded instruction) teaching. Additionally, school work will be evaluated on a more traditional grading scale, thereby helping to increase student motivation and accountability. Our teachers have used a wide variety of tools and instructional practices to support their students and will continue to collaborate with each other to align and grow these practices across grade level and course-alike teams.

Discussions around synchronous and asynchronous teaching and learning as well as student engagement and interactivity are on-going. As we have shared before, students' tech-life balance and overall well-being are an important part of our discussions as well.

Our planning for next year will include thoughtful collaboration with our teachers and administrators, researching practical solutions from a wide variety of schools across California, the nation, and even the world as we prepare for multiple possibilities within our financial means.

I encourage you to respond to the survey this week and to share your thoughts. Wishing you and your family safety and health.

Regards,

Geoff Yantz, Ed.D.
Superintendent